SCHENECTADY, N.Y.--On a night where Harvard was able to nab its second straight win, as well as the last ECAC win in 1996, it was a shame that two key Crimson players weren't here to enjoy the excitement.

Foremost, the man with the "C" embroidered onto his jersey, captain Ashlin Halfnight, remained home last night due to leg injury.

Suffering the injury during the Clarkson game last Saturday, Halfnight decided to forego the Union trek in order to rest up for the remainder of the season.

"Ashlin is a key player on our team," junior Henry Higdon said. "Ethan Oberman did a good job in his place."

The other clear void in the Harvard line-up was the absence of sophomore goaltender Peter Zakowich who didn't make the trip for unknown reasons.

With Zakowich missing in action, even more pressure was place upon the shoulders of freshman goaltender, J.R. Prestifilippo.

Registering his first shut-out of his career, Prestifilippo was solid, making 21 saves.

Midway through the first period, Union forward Chris Ford broke free from the Harvard defense, whipped two point-blank shots on Prestifilippo who blocked the first with his chest and then calmly gloved the second blast.

Standing in as Prestifilippo's best man was 6'5" (!) sophomore Bo Menkiti, who until last night, had been the number one junior varsity netminder.

Although he saw no playing action, in his varsity debut, Menkiti definitely gave the Harvard bench a "new" look.

Home Alone

In recent games, the student crowd at Bright Hockey Center has been noticeably scarce, but it shines in comparison to the slim-to-none clan present last night in Achilles Rink.

After playing some of its best hockey in some years, posting impressive wins over R.P.I and Clarkson, one wonders what it takes to draw a crowd.

No worries, however, because the Union student body has been on break since Thanksgiving due to trimester program.

The rowdy crowd doesn't have to report back to campus till after the New Year.